Suspender-buckle.



PATBNTED JULY 12, 1904. D. L. SMITH. SUSPENDER BUCKLE. APPLICATION FILED PEB. 23. 1864.

Patented July 12, 1904.

DIVIGHT L. SMITH, OF VVATERBURY,

CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE VATERBURY BUCKLE CO., OF IVATERBURY, CONNECTICUT, A COR- PORATION.

SUSPENDER-BUCKLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. I765,048, dated July 12, 1904. Application filed February 23, 1904. Serial No. 194,678. (No model.)

.To a?, whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DWIGHT L. SMITH, of Waterbury, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Suspender-Buckles; and I do hereby declare the following, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and the letters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, and which said drawings constitute part of this specification, and represent,in-

Figure l, a view in front elevation of a rustless suspender-buckle constructed in accordance with my invention; Fig. 2, a view thereof in rear elevation; Fig. 3, a view in vertical section through the buckle, showing it webbed; Fig. 4, a detached front View of the buckle-frame; Fig. 5, an end view thereof.

My invention relates to an improvement in that class of suspender-buckles called rustless for the reason that they are webbed so that the perspiration of the wearer is kept away from the metal, the object being to produce a simple, compact, effective, and convenient buckle constructed with particular reference to economy of webbing and to the avoidance of the production of any such humps or bunches of webbing upon the back of the webbed buckle as will interfere with the comfort of the wearer.

Vith these ends in View my invention consists in a rustless suspender-buckle having certain details of construction and combinations of parts,as will be hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

As shown in the drawings, the buckle-frame is made from a single piece of wire bent to forni a horizontal lower side 2, ends 3 3, and a horizontal upper side consisting of two inwardly-turned pintle ends 4 4, which extend toward each other to a greater or less extent. The said upper and lower sides of the buckleframe are separated from each other, so that a webbing-opening 5, lying in their plane, is formed between them. The lower side 2 of the buckle-frame is bent downward midway of its length to form aframe-supporting projection or linger 6, which is bent at an obtuse angle with respect to the plane of the upper portion of the frame,which comprises its upper and lower sides, its ends, and its threading-opening, as described. Then the buckle is in use, the said finger 6 of the frame is maintained in avertical position, whereby the parts 2, 3, and 4 of the frame forming its upper portion are maintained in a forwardly-inclined position, as shown by Fig. 3. The bucklelever, which is applied to the front of thesaid buckle-frame so as to depend from the upper side thereof, is formed from a single piece of sheet metal and comprises a plate-like fingerpiece 7, a clamping edge 8,extonding inwardly at an angle from the upper portion of the said finger-piece, and two sockets 9 9, which embrace the pintle ends 44, whereby the frame and lever are pivotally connected together. Tnder this construction and arrangement of the buckle frame and lever when they are properly proportioned the clamping edge 8 of the buckle-lever strikes over the upper edge or top of the lower side 2 of the buckle-frame and secures a grip upon the webbing 10.

To web the buckle, the one end of the webbing 10 is passed from rear to front through the webbing-opening 5 of the frame and then carried downward over and in front of the downward projection or finger 6 of the frame and then secured upon itself by stitches 13 to form a loop 14, which not only incloses the lower side 2 of the frame, but also the said projection or linger 6. The other end of the webbing is then passed through a cast-oil (not shown) of any ordinary construction and then from front to rear through the webbingopening 5. Now when the buckle-lever is pressed down into its closed position, as shown in Fig. 3, its clamping edge 8 forces the webbing from front to rear over the upper edge or top of the lower side2 of thebuck'le-frame and holds it in close frictional contact with the bend of the loop 14 where the same surrounds the lower side2 of the frame. In this manner the back of the buckle is covered with webbing and the buckle made rustless, with the utmost economy of webbing, and when the webbing is under draft or strain, as in use, its upper reach Il and its lower reach l2 will be brought into line or substantially into line, makingthc back of the wcbbed buckle substantially liat.

When the buckle is in use, the strain of the webbing on the opposite faces of the iinger 6 of its frame operates to hold the said linger in a vertical position, and thus prevents the frame from tilting, which would endanger the disturbance of the lever, and the release of the grip of the lever upon that portion of the webbing passing through the bucl. In arustless suspender-buckle, the combination with a frame having an upper and a lower side with a webbing-opening located between the said upper and lower sides of the frame and lying in their plane, the lower side being formed with a downward projection arranged at an angle with respect to the plane of the other parts of the frame, of a lever 1ocated in front of the said frame and pivoted to the upper side thereof in position to have its clamping edge coact with the upper edge or top of the lower side of the frame, and a piece of webbing attached to the lower side of the frame and passed from front to rear through the said webbingopening and engaged by the clamping edge of the lever which dcliects it over or approximately over the upper edge or top of the lower side of the frame.

2. In a rustless suspender-buckle, the combination with a buckle-frame comprising an upper and a lower side, and having a webbing-opening located between the said upper and lower sides 'of the frame and lying in their plane, the said lower side of the frame being formed with a downward projection or finger arranged at an angle with respect to the plane of the other parts of the frame; of a lever comprising a finger-piece and a clamping edge, the latter extending inwardly from the upper portion of the former, and the said lever being located in front of the said frame and piVoted to the upper side thereof in position to have its clamping edge coact with the upper edge or top of the lower side of the frame; and a piece of webbing formed with a loop to embrace the lower side of the frame whereby the webbing is attached to the frame, and passed from front to rear through the said webbing-opening of the frame and engaged by the clamping edge of the lever which deiiects it rearwardly over or approximately over the upper edge or top of the lower side of the frame.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

DWIGHT L. SMITH.

Vitnesses:

JULIUs MALTBY, MINNIE M. M. TRIP?. 

